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35-526: Seal River may refer to one of several rivers: Canada Seal River (Manitoba) , a tributary of Hudson Bay and a Canadian Heritage River Seal River (Ontario) , a right tributary of the Kesagami River United States - Alaska Seal River (Bering Glacier) Seal River (Cook Inlet) See also [ edit ] Little Seal River (Ontario) [REDACTED] Topics referred to by

70-529: A French force under the comte de La Pérouse composed of three ships, including one of 74 guns, and 290 soldiers. As a veteran Hearne recognised hopeless odds and surrendered without a shot. Hearne and some of the other prisoners were allowed to sail back to England from Hudson Strait in a small sloop. Hearne returned the next year but found trade had deteriorated. The First Nations population had been decimated by European-introduced diseases such as measles and smallpox , as well as starvation due to

105-527: A large lake, probably Sethnanei Lake. Here he decided to wait for better weather and live by fishing. In April, the fish began to give out. On 24 April, a large body of Indigenous people, mostly women, arrived from the south for the annual goose hunt. On 19 May, the geese arrived and there was now plenty to eat. They headed north and east past Baralzone Lake. By June, the geese had flown further north and they were again threatened with famine. At one point, they killed three muskoxen and had to eat them raw because it

140-504: A possible copper mine. The basic theme of Hearne's three journeys is the Englishmen's ignorance of the methods of travel through this very difficult country and their dependence on First Nations who knew the land and how to live off of it. First Journey: Since there was no canoe route to the northwest, the plan was to go on foot over the frozen winter ground. Without canoes, they would have to carry as much food as possible and then live off

175-518: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Seal River (Manitoba) At a length of 260 kilometers (162 mi), the Seal River is one of the four major rivers in Northern Manitoba , and it is the northernmost and only one that contains no dams. Its drainage basin is 50,000 square kilometres (19,000 sq mi) in area. The river

210-483: Is far removed from any human populations in the isolated wilderness. The nearest settlements are Churchill and the small Tadoule Lake . Churchill is about 45 kilometres (28 mi) south of the mouth of the river along the Hudson Bay, while Tadoule Lake is far inland near the source. There are no actual settlements or permanent human inhabitants along the Seal River. The nearest permanent road to connect Seal River to

245-779: The Albany River ). Having learned to live off the land, he took minimal provisions for the eight Europeans and two Home Guard Crees who accompanied him. After consulting some local chiefs, Hearne chose a strategic site on Pine Island Lake in the Saskatchewan River , 97 km (60 mi) above Fort Paskoya . The site was linked to both the Saskatchewan River trade route and the Churchill system. He became governor of Fort Prince of Wales on 22 January 1776. On 8 August 1782 Hearne and his complement of 38 civilians were confronted by

280-518: The Brigantine Charlotte and participated in the company's short-lived black whale fishery. In 1767, he found the remains of James Knight's expedition. In 1768, he examined portions of the Hudson Bay coasts with a view to improving the cod fishery. During this time, he gained a reputation for snowshoeing . Hearne was able to improve his navigational skills by observing William Wales who

315-549: The Copper-mine River with intent to kill Inuit, who were understood to frequent that river in considerable numbers. On 14 July 1771, they reached the Copper-mine River, a small stream flowing over a rocky bed in the "Barren Lands of the Little Sticks". A few miles down the river, just above a cataract , were the domed wigwams of an Eskimo camp. At 1 am on 17 July 1771 Matonabbee and the other Indigenous peoples fell upon

350-519: The Seal River was Samuel Hearne , who walked the route of the river in 1771. Early Europeans themselves saw no use for the river, while the only traces of their existence in the area were short-lived mining camps near the mouth of the river that date back only to the 1940s. While there are few historical remnants of European existence in the area, there are many artifacts belonging to the Chipewyan and even earlier Talteilei tribes. They regularly came to

385-514: The autumn. On his return journey he met Matonabbee who was to be his guide on the next journey. Matonabbee may well have saved him from freezing or starving to death. Most of the land Hearne crossed on his second journey is very desolate and was not properly explored again until Joseph Tyrrell in 1893. Third Journey: Hearne contrived to travel as the only European with a group of Chipewyan guides led by Matonabbee . The group also included eight of Matonabbee's wives to act as beasts of burden in

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420-725: The conflict, including the bombardment of Le Havre in 1759. At the end of the Seven Years' War, having served in the English Channel and then the Mediterranean, he left the Navy in 1763. In February 1766, he joined the Hudson's Bay Company as a mate on the sloop Churchill , which was then engaged in the Inuit trade out of Prince of Wales Fort , Churchill, Manitoba . Two years later, he became mate on

455-530: The continent at lower latitudes. This expedition also proved successful in its primary goal by discovering copper in the Coppermine River basin; however, an intensive search of the area yielded only one four-pound lump of copper and commercial mining was not considered viable. Matonabbee led Hearne back to Churchill by a wide westward circle past Bear Lake in Athabasca Country. In midwinter he became

490-415: The development of the area. The whole course of the river is entirely undeveloped and far removed from any regular human intervention. The river is considered one of the last great wild rivers of Canada. While the river served little use to the early European colonizers of the Hudson Bay region, the river itself served more importance for First Nations many centuries ago. The first European to navigate

525-500: The first European to see and cross Great Slave Lake . Hearne returned to Fort Prince of Wales on 30 June 1772, having walked some 8,000 km (5,000 mi) and explored more than 650,000 km (250,000 sq mi). Hearne was sent to Saskatchewan to establish Cumberland House , the second inland trading post for the Hudson's Bay Company in 1774 (the first being Henley House , established in 1743, 200 km or 120 mi up

560-484: The lack of normal hunting supplies of powder and shot. Matonabbee had committed suicide and the rest of Churchill's leading First Nations had moved to other posts. Hearne's health began to fail and he delivered up command at Churchill on 16 August 1787 and returned to England. In the last decade of his life he used his experiences on the barrens, on the northern coast, and in the interior to help naturalists like Thomas Pennant in their researches. His friend William Wales

595-528: The land. Hearne planned to join a group of northern First Nations that had come to trade at Churchill and somehow induce them to lead him to the copper mine. He left Churchill on 6 November 1769 along with two company employees, two Cree hunters and a band of Chipewyans and went north across the Seal River , an east–west river north of Churchill. By 19 November their European provisions gave out and their hunters had found little game (Hearne had left too late in

630-446: The marks of violence, and many bones were strewed about the encampment, and as the spot exactly answers the description, given by Mr Hearne, of the place... Hearne is mentioned by Charles Darwin in the sixth chapter of The Origin of Species : In North America the black bear was seen by Hearne swimming for hours with widely open mouth, thus catching, like a whale, insects in the water. Samuel Hearne's account of his exploration of

665-518: The murderers made no reply till they had stuck both their spears through her body ... even at this hour I cannot reflect on the transactions of that horrid day without shedding tears. A few days later, Hearne was the first European to reach the shore of the Arctic Ocean by an overland route. By tracing the Coppermine River to the Arctic Ocean he had established there was no Northwest Passage through

700-575: The poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge , made a brief notebook entry where he mentioned Hearne's book. Hearne may have been one of the inspirations for the Rime of the Ancient Mariner . Hearne's journals and maps were proven correct by Sir John Franklin when he verified the discovery of the Bloody Falls massacre during his own Coppermine Expedition of 1819–1822 . He wrote: Several human skulls which bore

735-584: The rest of the Canadian populace is 275 kilometres (171 mi) southwest of the river. While the source of the Seal River is Shethanei Lake , that water comes from the North Seal River and South Seal River, which empty into the lake. Those two rivers are actually much longer and contain more water than the Seal River. The river flows through a mix of boreal forests at the southernmost edge of Canada's tundra . Because it travels through this transition zone,

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770-458: The river and the surrounding area are rare and very expensive. Because of the extreme isolation of the river and its dangerous topography, very few adventurers travel to the river on a yearly basis. The rivers owes its preservation to the harsh wilderness, infertile soil, and very cold climate, which have made the area very inhospitable to even the most experienced travelers. Samuel Hearne Samuel Hearne (February 1745 – November 1792)

805-422: The river to hunt the vast amounts of caribou . Traces of First Nation presence in the area dates back up to 7,000 years ago. Because there are no public travel accommodations near the river, access to the river can only be provided through various far-off airports — in which Churchill Airport and Tadoule Lake Airport are the closest. The rest of the journey to the river must be hiked. Charter tour groups of

840-551: The river travels through dense forests, as well as portions of the barren and rocky subarctic wilderness. The course of the river is inconsistent and very dangerous to navigate . The river has no human uses, except for the very few skilled travelers on rafts or canoes who brave the treacherous waters each year. Seal River was nominated for the Canadian Heritage Rivers System in 1987 because of its natural and ecological importance, not its importance to people in

875-427: The same term This disambiguation page lists articles about distinct geographical locations with the same name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Seal_River&oldid=813638027 " Category : Place name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description

910-467: The season and the caribou had already left the Barren Grounds for the shelter of the forested country further south). They headed west and north, finding only a few ptarmigan , fish and three stray caribou. The Indigenous people, who knew the country, had better sense than to risk starvation in this way and began deserting. When the last First Nations left, Hearne and his European companions returned to

945-444: The sheltered valley of the Seal River, where he was able to find venison, and reached Churchill on 11 December. Second Journey: Since he could not control the northern First Nations, Hearne proposed to try again using 'home guards', that is, Cree who lived around the post and hunted in exchange for European supplies. He left Churchill on 23 February. Reaching the Seal River, he found good hunting and followed it west until he reached

980-594: The sledge traces, camp servant and cooks. This third expedition set out in December 1770, to reach the Coppermine River in summer, by which he could descend to the Arctic in canoes . Matonabbee kept a fast pace, so fast they reached the great caribou traverse before provisions dwindled and in time for the spring hunt. Here Northern First Nations ( Dene ) hunters gathered to hunt the vast herds of caribou migrating north for

1015-574: The sleeping "Esquimaux" in a ruthless massacre. Approximately twenty men, women and children were killed; this would be known as the Massacre at Bloody Falls . ... a young girl, seemingly about eighteen years of age, [was] killed so near me, that when the first spear was stuck into her side she fell down at my feet, and twisted round my legs, so that it was with difficulty that I could disengage myself from her dying grasps. As two Indian men pursued this unfortunate victim, I solicited very hard for her life; but

1050-512: The summer. A store of meat was laid up for Hearne's voyage and a band of " Yellowknife " Dene joined the expedition. Matonabbee ordered his women to wait for his return in the Athabasca country to the west. The Dene were generally a mild and peaceful people, however, they were in a state of conflict with the Inuit. A great number of Yellowknife First Nations joined Hearne's party to accompany them to

1085-526: Was a teacher at Christ's Hospital and he assisted Hearne to write A Journey from Prince of Wales's Fort in Hudson's Bay to the Northern Ocean . This was published in 1795, three years after Hearne's death of dropsy in November 1792 at the age of 47. On 1 July 1767, he chiselled his name on smooth, glaciated stone at Sloop's Cove near Fort Prince of Wales where it remains today. One of Wales's pupils,

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1120-435: Was an English explorer, fur-trader, author and naturalist . He was the first European to make an overland excursion across northern Canada to the Arctic Ocean , specifically to Coronation Gulf , via the Coppermine River . In 1774, Hearne built Cumberland House for the Hudson's Bay Company , its second interior trading post after Henley House and the first permanent settlement in present Saskatchewan . Samuel Hearne

1155-618: Was at Hudson Bay during 1768–1769 after being commissioned by the Royal Society to observe the Transit of Venus with Joseph Dymond. The English on Hudson Bay had long known that the First Nations to the northwest used native copper, as indicated by such words as Yellowknife . When, in 1768, a northern First Nation (some say it was Matonabbee ) brought lumps of copper to Churchill, the governor, Moses Norton , decided to send Hearne in search of

1190-754: Was born in February 1745 in London. Hearne's father was Secretary of the Waterworks of London Bridge , who died in 1748. His mother's name was Diana, and his sister's name was Sarah, three years younger than Samuel. Samuel Hearne joined the British Royal Navy in 1756 at the age of 11 as midshipman under the fighting captain Samuel Hood . He remained with Hood during the Seven Years' War , seeing considerable action during

1225-495: Was too wet to light a fire. They crossed the Kazan River above Yathkyed Lake where they found good hunting and fishing and then went west to Lake Dubawnt which is about 720 km (450 mi) northwest of Churchill. On 14 August, his quadrant was destroyed, which accounts for the inaccuracy of latitudes on the remainder to this and the next journey. At this point the sources become vague, but Hearne returned to Churchill in

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